Seogyo-dong Korean BBQ dinner for two under ₩50,000: Mapo Gui Madang

There's a budget-friendly Korean BBQ place near my neighborhood, so I went to Mapo Gui Madang Seogyo Direct Branch for dinner on the last night of Chuseok. I was looking for somewhere good value but the reviews were a bit mixed, so I went in half-convinced — but my partner and I ended up really satisfied.

Mapo Gui Madang Seogyo Direct Branch opening hours and parking

Mapo Gui Madang Seogyo Direct Branch is located at 49 World Cup buk-ro, Mapo-gu, Seoul, and is open daily from 16:00 to 22:30. Parking is available in the lot behind the building.

What is the atmosphere like at Mapo Gui Madang?

The Mapo Gui Madang sign proudly says "scallion kimchi restaurant." And the scallion kimchi really is amazing, but the napa cabbage kimchi is too, haha. I went expecting the scallion kimchi to be good, but the napa cabbage kimchi exceeded expectations — I was surprised.

There are quite a few round-table seats and the place is fairly clean. It was nice that the restroom is inside the restaurant, and it was well maintained too.

Mapo Gui Madang menu and prices

At Mapo Gui Madang Seogyo Direct Branch, frozen pork belly is ₩9,900 per serving, while fresh whole pork belly, fresh whole pork neck, whole makchang, and spicy grilled octopus are each ₩13,900 per serving.

• Frozen pork belly, 1 serving — ₩9,900
• Fresh whole pork belly, 1 serving — ₩13,900
• Fresh whole pork neck, 1 serving — ₩13,900
• Whole makchang, 1 serving — ₩13,900
• Spicy grilled octopus, 1 serving — ₩13,900

A lot of places these days only give you 150–180g per serving, but here you get 200g per serving!! And the prices are still nice. Soju and beer are also ₩5,000 each, haha — important to me. Jjagyechi is also ₩5,000, which is pretty cheap.

Three kimchis steal the show among the free side dishes

The basic side dishes at Mapo Gui Madang are kept simple: scallion kimchi, napa cabbage kimchi, white kimchi, ssamjang, garlic, and lettuce. But that scallion kimchi, napa cabbage kimchi and white kimchi cover everything. You don't even think about the other side dishes.

What we ordered for two at Mapo Gui Madang

• 3 servings frozen pork belly (ate 2, ordered 1 more)
• Jjagyechi
• 2 bottles of Jinro soju
• Rice

Are 2 servings of frozen pork belly enough for two?

Since Mapo Gui Madang's frozen pork belly is 200g per serving, even ordering just 2 servings felt like quite a lot. The one on the left is the 2 servings, the one on the right is the extra 1 serving we ordered later. At most frozen pork belly places, 2 servings is really skimpy, but here it was different. The fat-to-meat ratio was good and the thickness was just right.

A dash of pepper and extra garlic on the grill

Pepper, an essential item with frozen pork belly, came out with the meal — you put the meat on, and once it's just cooked, sprinkle on some pepper. We both love garlic, so we got extra and grilled it several times. Grilling it in the spot where the fat runs down — nothing pairs better with pork belly than that. When the meat quality isn't great, grilling it produces a lot of that flabby fat, but there was none of that here — it grilled up nice and clean.

Rice, scallion kimchi, and meat on a lettuce leaf, wrapped up into one bite, and cheers. This is the taste... this is it!! Comforting the last-night-of-Chuseok blues with pork belly and soju. The combo of pork belly and soju — nothing else can compete.

Mapo Gui Madang's jjagyechi comes topped with a boiled egg

Mapo Gui Madang Seogyo Direct Branch's jjagyechi (₩5,000) comes with a boiled egg instead of a fried egg, haha. You know jjagyechi always tastes best when you order it at a restaurant, right? It just doesn't taste the same made at home... The jjagyechi I know usually comes with a fried egg, so this was my first time having it like this. Breaking the yolk and mixing it all together — this jjagyechi is delicious too.

The scallion kimchi is great with the pork belly, but the combo with jjagyechi is irresistible too. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say we ordered the jjagyechi just to eat it with the scallion kimchi, haha.

Does Mapo Gui Madang make its own kimchi?

The scallion kimchi at Mapo Gui Madang Seogyo Direct Branch is homemade by the owner. The seasoning was well absorbed and it was perfectly fermented, with amazing depth of flavor and texture. When I told the owner it was delicious, he said he made it himself, haha — he was clearly very proud of his scallion kimchi.

Besides the scallion kimchi, the white kimchi is delicious too, and this napa cabbage kimchi — it's genuinely amazing. My partner tried it and told me I had to try it too, and he was right — the cabbage itself was crisp, refreshing and crunchy, and just so delicious. (For real.)

Since this is a budget-friendly BBQ place, and these days a lot of kimchi is made with Chinese red pepper powder and cabbage, I assumed they might use Chinese ingredients too — but apparently all the ingredients in the kimchi are Korean, and the owner makes it himself.

How much did Korean BBQ for two cost?

Between the two of us we had 3 servings of pork belly, 2 bottles of soju, jjagyechi, and rice, and it still came to under ₩50,000. Mapo Gui Madang Seogyo Direct Branch is an incredible value — and beyond the value, I was surprised by how delicious the kimchi is. If you're near Hongdae or Seogyo-dong looking for an affordable Korean BBQ spot with genuinely great kimchi, give it a try!